well it slightly irks me when I have 5 different engines that all do the same thing with the same resources in the same way. and yes MFR tree or nether pump lava are the best ways to go. It also gets systematic from play through to play through. Its kinda what put me in MF2 in the first place. Its easier when you have more options, its more interesting when you have less options than if you have more.
If you have the latest version of the pack 2.0.1 (or newer), it has the new extra utilities generators. I had the chance to check out the culinary generator. Convert food into RF!
The better the food, the more power you get. If I ever get far enough in hardcore, I plan on using transvector interfaces attached to growthcraft fishers. The fishers check the surrounding blocks 3x3x3 cube with itself in the center to see how often it will generate an item. You can share water blocks, and end up spacing the fishers every other block. For some string and sticks, it is a pretty powerful block. The transvector interface is so I don't have any pipes connected directly to the fisher, thereby having all blocks around it as water and maximizing its output. Feed the fish into a furnace (you can use the infernal furnace for some XP), then feed the cooked fish into the generator.
I thought the culinary generator fits in perfectly with the MagicFarm theme!
As for the numbers, the culinary generator produces 40RF and cooked fish lasts for 4 seconds. Raw fish is 2 seconds. Based on that, it looks like you get 4 seconds per full hunger bar filled when eaten. So if you can produce a few of those culinary feast meals, you should do quite well for power generation.